Career success can be measured in a variety of different ways – money, title, awards, reputation – the list goes on. As one of the most difficult industries to not only break into, but remain successful in, the sports industry has created awards to recognize those individuals whose hard work has paid off. Today, popular sports periodical, the

Sports Business Journal, will be honoring this year’s Forty Under 40 class in Los Angeles, CA. For those not familiar with this highly respected award, here is a little more background. 

The SBJ Forty Under 40 award was first established in 1999 to honor the most successful and promising executives in sports business under the age of 40. After reviewing hundreds of nominations, the final winners are chosen by a committee of SportsBusiness Daily/Global/Journal editors. The winners are then invited to bring family, friends, and those who have helped them in their career journey for a black tie awards ceremony. This year’s class includes executives from the NBA, NFL, ESPN, Chicago Cubs, MLB, Facebook, and AEG to name a few. 

What makes this year’s Forty Under 40 class so special, though, is Navigate’s very own president, AJ Maestas, has been selected to receive this impressive award. AJ’s tremendous work ethic combined with his natural ability to befriend anyone and everyone around him has allowed him to receive great success in his career and this has not gone unnoticed. Great career success does not come easy. As most sports industry professionals can attest to, it starts with numerous internships and extensive amounts of grunt work, but if you can stick it out by learning from every experience you encounter, networking with as many people as possible, and setting yourself apart from your peers, you may one day find yourself on the SBJ’s Forty Under 40 list. Congratulations, AJ!